[Ricochet]

Disagree. How can my (not a new Fusion) modern car sit for weeks in the cold with no problems or even a hint of them. There is something wrong with this car.

I wasn't stating everyone had just a battery issue, I have replaced both my Fords batteries as they are not very good to start with, and have not had a issue since. Some of the Ford batteries are not that good, just saying, I have tested them, both of them had bad cells, that is why I mentioned it. Hopefully if there is some other issue that they get it resolved.

 

[DaMiFo]

[...] why still an issue, after months of "testing?" Why not a scabbed on switch to the ACM to test that theory? Since this "bug" is potentially life threatening, in addition to financial and emotional costs, why the complete confidence Ford will do something in a timely fashion? Looks to me like stalling, foot dragging by Ford while they desparately seek a fix, imho-

I also do not see how this is life threatening. I agree it's frustrating and a major inconvenience to those with the issues, and those who's cars have been out of service should be compensated, but not life threatening. No offence, but for someone who is supposedly knowledgeable about AI and programming, I thought you would know that it will take Ford a little time to test the module update to be sure it works on all cars and configurations, and does not cause any additional issues. Ford does share these computer across it's entire lineup. If Ford were to push a rushed, untested, "scabbed", and botched hotfix onto my car, that would infuriate me and I am sure many others.

 

[Sport]

Well my Sport has been at the dealer for 2 months now but they did get it to act up. The CD just started spinning and indexing and would not shut off. They have ordered the "CD" actually the entire radio. I have been informed that the Sony Radio/CD is on back order with Ford. They are trying to get me a date when a replacement will be available. I hope this takes care of the issue but at this time I feel it is a crap shoot. Although if they have the Sony radios on back order it makes me wonder if they are now sending these to the dealers and that is why they don't have any, or did they purg the service stock because they are defective and Ford is waiting for replacements from Sony or another vendor.

I will update once I get more information from Ford.

 

[MtlFusport]

Well.. My car is still in.. still waiting for the ACM... I keep asking them if it's BO and the answer I always get is :"hold for shipping" They keep telling me it's jammed up in a truck somewhere waiting for Customs... 3 weeks now... driving around in a crappy Kia Forte.... If I don't get my car by tomorrow night, I'm calling Ford Corporate!!

 

[Al from Iowa]

I've been waiting about 2 weeks for a backordered ACM.

 

[scherp69]

Got a call from my dealer today. Ford finally got back to them after checking and monitoring every module and fuse one by one. Ford asked the tech to do some specific testing on the ACM including to disconnect it and monitor. Got a text near the end of the day and was told Ford told them to replace the ACM. As with the others, I was told the ACM is on back order so not sure how long that will take. Will be 7 weeks on Saturday. Hope the end is in sight.

 

[tmcphail]

Wow the length of this thread is crazy. Luckily so far mine has been totally normal in regards Vbatt

 

[datsunnazi]

If I don't get my car by tomorrow night, I'm calling Ford Corporate!!

Why haven't you already?

 

[RussW]

Update on my dead batt on LI...

Well.... it finally happened to my Sport Fusion. I bought it in August and no problems until November. That's when I went away for 6 days. When I came home the message on center screen was "system saver active to save battery" , but it started up fine.

Then a week ago I left again on a trip. Home (Long Island, NY) got down to single digits at night (in Nov temps stayed in 50s). Then this morning while waiting for my flight in Phoenix, my FordPass app dinged and message was, "Deep Sleep Mode Activated". I thought, "uh oh". So I call my girlfriend and ask her to drive the car to her work today.

But, nope. She unlocked it and said that suddenly everything went dark. No dash lights, no center screen. Not even dome and ambient lighting!

It's being flat bedded to my local Ford dealer now. They told her that they "were aware of this problem and will remedy it".

I'm curious to see what that entails. I will check with them tomorrow (since I get back too late tonight). I will post any updates/revelations.

So... as of 12:30pm Eastern Time, my Ford dealer service department says that they "do not know what is wrong". They will run tests. They are looking for draw problems. As an IT guy, I explained that they won't find anything because I truly believe it's their design and computer. The car is no longer just a car. Remember in the old days (5 years ago and before), when you had a low battery, the starter would slowly turn or you'd get clicking, but now with the car being essentially a computer, as soon as the voltage goes below a certain level, nothing will work. This is to protect the sensitive electronics. The problem, as I surmise is this:
1) The 2017 Ford Fusion Sport has a modem inside it that communicates with the FordPass app (and probably other things). What happens when your cell phone has only 1 bar of service, instead of 5 bars? Yes... it uses MORE and MORE power from its battery to connect to the cell tower. So... my car on the east end of Long Island is parked in my driveway where my cell phone only gets ONE bar of service. So... using this logic, if the internal modem in the Fusion Sport has to "ping" the tower to send periodic signals to the FordPass app (like two weeks ago, all of a sudden in the middle of the night, my FordPass app had a message that stated that my washer fluid was low... it didn't tell me that on the dashboard during the day.. but something woke it up at night and it transmitted).... then it communicates each night.... and it gets colder... and the car sits unused for a few days.... and it's using more power to communicate... UNTIL.. .the battery goes below "minimum starting voltage" and everything shuts down.
2) Ford should have known about this and installed DEEP CYCLE very high CCA batteries in these cars to help them withstand a constant voltage drain, even if it's only periodic.

As I stated to the service tech at the local Ford dealer... they won't find anything because they can't afford to assign a tech to watch the car and the draw meter for 12 hours to find out what happens. They will pop it on, check each circuit, and see that all is ok. They will also see that the battery is "operating within normal parameters" as is everything else.

Finally.... I surmise that nothing will happen until a Class Action Lawsuit is initiated against Ford.

When I contacted their corporate service. I was told to bring it to the dealer service because there's "no recalls or technical service bulletins issued on the problem". And if I wasn't satisfied to lodge a complaint with the NHSTA. And since this isn't a life threatening safety problem (like faulty airbags or faulty seat belt tensioners), it will be "back burnered".

Whew! Long reply. Sorry group.

 

[mikejk]

2) Ford should have known about this and installed DEEP CYCLE very high CCA batteries in these cars to help them withstand a constant voltage drain, even if it's only periodic.

Has anyone here replaced the battery with something bigger? Maybe they should have left the bigger 730A battery in that is listed in the manual.

 

[Catfish]

2) Ford should have known about this and installed DEEP CYCLE very high CCA batteries in these cars to help them withstand a constant voltage drain, even if it's only periodic.

DEEP Cycle battery and High CCA do not go together.
Deep Cycle batteries are measured in AH (Amp Hours) and are designed to provide power for constant drain applications. A Deep Cycle battery does not have a CCA rating. This is the type of battery used in golf carts, RV trailers, ect.

An automotive battery is rated in CA, CCA and a Reserve Capacity. They are designed to provide high starting currents (as CA or CCA). The reserve capacity is an important measurement that should be considered when selecting a battery. Keep in mind when an automotive battery voltage drops below ~11.9 to 11.7V, it is considered dead. While a Higher Reserve Capacity rating will allow for more power to be drained and still function, if the static voltage falls below ~11.9 it will not likely start the car.

There is one battery design that rates batteries with CA, CCA and AH on the same battery but those are fairly large Marine batteries and not well suited or automotive applications even if they would physically fit.

Below is one source of info about these ratings:

4. CCA, CA, AH and RC. What are these all about? These are the standards that most battery companies use to rate the output and capacity of a battery.

Cold cranking amps (CCA) is a measurement of the number of amps a battery can deliver at 0 ° F for 30 seconds and not drop below 7.2 volts. So a high CCA battery rating is especially important in starting battery applications, and in cold weather.This measurement is not particularly important in Deep cycle batteries, though it is the most commonly 'known' battery measurement.

CA is cranking amps measured at 32 degrees F. This rating is also called marine cranking amps (MCA). Hot cranking amps (HCA) is seldom used any longer but is measured at 80 ° F.

Reserve Capacity (RC) is a very important rating. This is the number of minutes a fully charged battery at 80 ° F will discharge 25 amps until the battery drops below 10.5 volts.

An amp hour (AH) is a rating usually found on deep cycle batteries. The standard rating is an Amp rating taken for 20 Hours. What this means, say for a 100 AH rated battery is this: Draw from the battery for 20 hours and it will provide a total of 100 amp-hours. That translates to about 5 amps an hour. 5 x 20 = 100. However, it's very important to know that the total time of discharge and load applied is not a linear relationship. As your load increases, your realized capacity decreases. This means if you discharged that same 100 AH battery by a 100 amp load, it will not give you one hour of runtime. On the contrary, the perceived capacity of the battery will be that of 64 Amp Hours.

- See more at: https://www.batterystuff.com/kb/articles/battery-articles/battery-basics.html#4

Has anyone here replaced the battery with something bigger? Maybe they should have left the bigger 730A battery in that is listed in the manual.

I would expect that the larger 730 CCA battery would also have a higher Reserve Capacity which may help. But, I am not sure that would solve the problem...

From the information I have seen, this issue in not specific to the '17 Fusion Sport, it is a little more wide spread than that.
It seems to point to the ACM (Audio Control Module) and is most likely a programming issue based on various responses to this thread.

I expect Ford is well aware of the issue and is working toward a solution. Obviously that solution is not coming fast enough.
Who knows, it could turn out to be a simple programming update or a replacement module when it is figured out.

 

[D&D]

I am also waiting for a new ACM. I was told the module was not available from United Radio where the modules come from and no definite time frame when it will be available. I am hoping that when the module is available it will be improved, reprogrammed, modified, revised or something. Since I haven't reset the audio etc there has been no drain on the battery. I am getting tired of no audio etc. I am in it for the long haul as we love the car.

 

[Vert]

So... as of 12:30pm Eastern Time, my Ford dealer service department says that they "do not know what is wrong". They will run tests. They are looking for draw problems. As an IT guy, I explained that they won't find anything because I truly believe it's their design and computer. The car is no longer just a car. Remember in the old days (5 years ago and before), when you had a low battery, the starter would slowly turn or you'd get clicking, but now with the car being essentially a computer, as soon as the voltage goes below a certain level, nothing will work. This is to protect the sensitive electronics. The problem, as I surmise is this:
1) The 2017 Ford Fusion Sport has a modem inside it that communicates with the FordPass app (and probably other things). What happens when your cell phone has only 1 bar of service, instead of 5 bars? Yes... it uses MORE and MORE power from its battery to connect to the cell tower. So... my car on the east end of Long Island is parked in my driveway where my cell phone only gets ONE bar of service. So... using this logic, if the internal modem in the Fusion Sport has to "ping" the tower to send periodic signals to the FordPass app (like two weeks ago, all of a sudden in the middle of the night, my FordPass app had a message that stated that my washer fluid was low... it didn't tell me that on the dashboard during the day.. but something woke it up at night and it transmitted).... then it communicates each night.... and it gets colder... and the car sits unused for a few days.... and it's using more power to communicate... UNTIL.. .the battery goes below "minimum starting voltage" and everything shuts down.
2) Ford should have known about this and installed DEEP CYCLE very high CCA batteries in these cars to help them withstand a constant voltage drain, even if it's only periodic.

As I stated to the service tech at the local Ford dealer... they won't find anything because they can't afford to assign a tech to watch the car and the draw meter for 12 hours to find out what happens. They will pop it on, check each circuit, and see that all is ok. They will also see that the battery is "operating within normal parameters" as is everything else.

Finally.... I surmise that nothing will happen until a Class Action Lawsuit is initiated against Ford.

When I contacted their corporate service. I was told to bring it to the dealer service because there's "no recalls or technical service bulletins issued on the problem". And if I wasn't satisfied to lodge a complaint with the NHSTA. And since this isn't a life threatening safety problem (like faulty airbags or faulty seat belt tensioners), it will be "back burnered".

Whew! Long reply. Sorry group.

Today's cars are a lot different. For instance, battery died in stang over the summer, jumped it and when I started driving it, it wouldn't shift out of 1st. First thought was oh crap tranny issues, but once the battery was charged and the power cycled, all was good.

 

[jdb1972]

Mine has been at the dealer since 19 December they ordered an ACM on 22 December. I just received a call today the part came in today and they installed it. Since I won't be able to pick mine up until Monday, that gives them 5 days to make sure it starts. So we'll see what happens.

 

[gedalanc]

I really think there is a lot of over reaction on this issue! A lot of problems are due to extreme temp drops, any standard battery will loose charge in these type of conditions with the newer electronics, a couple of things that can aid in this are, if your going to leave your car a extended time use a battery tender, use a block heater if you leave your car outside to 30-deg temps, get a battery blanket to keep your battery from freezing, purchase a good battery, i.e Duracell, GMT type "yes" they cost on average of $ 200.00 but can withstand extreme temps and longer term drain. All the newer cars do drain the batteries over time with all the electronics you need a good battery to start with, don't expect Ford to put a really top quality battery in it.

This really doesn't deserve a response, but I'll give one anyway. If you read through these posts you'd see there are people in Miami with this problem, people who keep their cars in heated garages with this problem, and even unheated garages rarely get below freezing if they are attached to a house, unless its 0 or below...

Not sure what you consider newer, but my 2016 Explorer Sport was parked right next to it, it starts every time. It started every time last winter as well. 2013 Explorer Sport and SHO started every time for the 3 years I owned them as well...

I live in the NE where it gets cold every year, never had this problem with any other car... ever... But maybe expecting a car you sell where it gets cold to start when it actually gets cold is too much to ask...lol

 

[jtk500]

Wow the length of this thread is crazy. Luckily so far mine has been totally normal in regards Vbatt

I could be wrong, but I think the tuned ones aren't having this problem.

 

[gedalanc]

Mine has been at the dealer since 19 December they ordered an ACM on 22 December. I just received a call today the part came in today and they installed it. Since I won't be able to pick mine up until Monday, that gives them 5 days to make sure it starts. So we'll see what happens.

Thanks for this update, maybe this gives some indication how far they are back-ordered. Mine was ordered on 1/4 so maybe by the end of January? But who knows, they could be ramping production that will shorten the wait or getting swamped with way more orders as the diagnoses gets more fine-tuned so the wait could have grown...

Hopefully my buyback will be done by then...

 

[Wildcat Birdie]

I could be wrong, but I think the tuned ones aren't having this problem.

You are wrong. There have been some with the tunes that are having the issue.

 

[jtk500]

Oh. Well... There goes that theory!

 

[MtlFusport]

Now today I was actually mad..... not at my dealer but at Ford... Called Canadian corporate to complain because my car was in dealer since the 21st of December and the ACM is still not in. Always asking the dealer if the part was BO and they telling me that the part is not listed as BO in the system but held for shipping.... Let's just say I was not a happy camper and when the guy on the line asked me how I was doing today and answered not well because I was paying 700$ a month driving a f***ing Kia Forte, I guess he knew right there the call wasn't going to end well.....